Wednesday, November 30, 2011

A doctor, a lawyer and a missionary all get stuck in an elevator . . .

Wow - I wish I knew the punchline for that joke! It wasn't a joke this weekend, however, it really happened! Allen, Russell and I, along with several members of a visiting team, were trapped in a hotel elevator for about ten mildly traumatic minutes! It was the first time I'd ever been stuck in an elevator - and while we laughed and joked about the situation, there was definitely an undercurrent of tension. All was eventually well, we were freed from the elevator in time for - well, just a bit late for - the final team meeting of the week.

The team, consisting of 23 people, spent last week in the village of Gualcince, about three hours drive farther into the mountains than Gracias. We had to drive most of the food for the team into the location in advance of their arrival, as things like eggs, bread, ground beef and milk aren't available in that area, or aren't easy to acquire (for instance, milk and eggs are available from local farms, but this kind of shopping requires knowledge and time - things we don't have while hosting a team). As a medical team, including doctors, dentists, nurses and non-medical support personnel, these folks saw over 2000 patients in Gualcince and four surrounding villages, over the course of about five days.

We certainly appreciate all of the preparation, hard work and expense that go into making a week-long mission trip a success. You guys are welcome back anytime!

1 comment:

Lauren Wood said...

Thanks for hosting us while we were there!! Miss you guys and hope to see you in the near future :)